Latest / Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas / Dragnet: Production 9 (Benny Trousel) (EP1376)
Transcript
- 0:28Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
- 0:35is your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, send it
- 0:39to me Box thirteen at Greatdetectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at Radio
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- 0:51Radio Detectives. Well, we begin today with the reminder that this show is
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- 1:00to thank Williams so much for his support. We'll con access to the premium
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- 1:07may support the show at support not Great Detectives dot net. Well, now,
- 1:15I also want to let you know that we're trying out a new microphone.
- 1:21It's the same brand and top as my old mic, but it's a
- 1:23newer model and it's in a little better condition. That old one was getting
- 1:27kind of beat up, so I hope you enjoy the new sound. Here
- 1:30it's a blue snowball ice. Today we do have a review of the Poirot
- 1:37telefilm The Big Four, and you can follow all of my columns having sent
- 1:44directly to your kindle by searching for the great detectors of old time radio in
- 1:49the candle store. Well, now it's time for today's episode of Dragnet,
- 1:53and it's time for Production nine, also known as Benny Trounsel. Here's another
- 2:00in NBC's great parade of new shows. Ladies and Gentlemen, The story you
- 2:12are about to hear is true, only the names have been changed to protect
- 2:16the innocent. NBC brings you Dragnet. You're a detective sergeant. You're assigned
- 2:32to Narcotics Detail. For more than two months, doctor's offices have been purglarized,
- 2:38hospital pharmacies, pillaged drug stores, robbed medical supply firms, ransacked with
- 2:45one purpose in mind, the theft of narcotics. The criminals are expert,
- 2:51coming, vicious. Your job get them. Dragnet the documented drama of an
- 3:00actual crime, investigated and solved by the men who unrelentingly stand watch on the
- 3:04security of your home, your family, and your life. While the next
- 3:07thirty minutes, transcribed in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will
- 3:13travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case from
- 3:15official police files, from beginning to end, from crime to punishment, Dragnet
- 3:22is the story of your police force in action. It was Thursday, March
- 3:30twenty third, was windy in Los Angeles. We were working the night Watch
- 3:35out of narcotics. My partner's Ben Romero. The boss is ed Backstrand,
- 3:38chief of Detectives. My name's Friday. I was on my way back from
- 3:43the Record Bureau and it was ten thirty five pm when I got to room
- 3:45twenty four in Narcotics Detail. Yeah, okay, I'll be right over.
- 3:52Thank you get anything, Joe, nothing, we don't know already. How
- 3:57about you? That was a county hospital on the phone, Well pretty fairly.
- 4:00I told him we'd be right over. What's he got? One of
- 4:03our informants, Benny Troumsill Ready, let's go. What's with Benny. It's
- 4:11a bad shape. Somebody worked him over. They found him in an alley
- 4:14off of South Maine. Yeah, Doc says Trouns will talk. Before he
- 4:17passed down. Ben aning good, he claimed he knows who's running a new
- 4:21dope racket in town. Says they got him. Now, let's take the
- 4:25stairs here. Huh. Why should they bother with small fry like Benny.
- 4:29That's what I'm wondering. Blackmail. Maybe Benny's still on the needle. Maybe
- 4:32that accounts for his story. Duck says, it's skull is fracture. Morphine
- 4:38doesn't do that to you. Yeah, Ben, he mentioned any names.
- 4:41I don't know. Doc didn't say, here's the garage. Come on,
- 4:47when did they pick up Benny? About an hour ago? You get a
- 4:53pocket full of Benels on him? Heroin trouns Will small Fry had that much
- 4:57dope on him in his life. That's what makes it in. That's Good
- 5:13County Hospital. Yes, sir, the line is busy when you wait.
- 5:17Thank you? Can I hope you gentlemen, we'd like to see doctor Welsh.
- 5:20She's expecting us. Your name's Bath. This is sergeant Romero. My
- 5:24name is Friday, police officer. Oh yes, around the corner to your
- 5:27left from one twenty seven. The doctor's waiting for you. Thank you.
- 5:29Come on, Ben, I hope Benny's still talking. Make pet sure usually
- 5:35yeah, here it is on. Hi you Ben, Joe? How are
- 5:45you? Doctor Anning New just left troums upstairs. You think we can talk
- 5:48to him now? Won't do much good. He died about six minutes ago.
- 5:55For almost two years, Benny Trum's will. Unaddict himself had been one
- 5:59of the most valuable informants Ben and I had in the narcotic gangs. More
- 6:02than once he had helped to solve a case. But this time, if
- 6:05Benny Trunsill had any direct leads to the nerve center of the newest narcotic ring,
- 6:10he took them with him. Besides his dying accusation that the ring had
- 6:14gotten to him, he left behind only two small scraps of information. First,
- 6:18when he arrived at the County hospital, doctor Welsh reported that Tronsll repeatedly
- 6:23muttered the name Patterson. Secondly, among the few personal effects found in his
- 6:28pockets was a good amount of heroin and a small piece of white paper with
- 6:30two words scrawled on it, Tucker Building. Benny Trunsell's body was taken to
- 6:35the County Morgue and the next morning it was posted at the coroner's inquest.
- 6:40The cause of death was listed as a brain hemorrhage induced by severe blows by
- 6:44a blunt instrument on the sides and base of the skull, inflicted by a
- 6:47person or person's unknown besides Ben and myself, The only identification witness at the
- 6:53inquest was a woman who managed a rooming house in Benedict Dally, where Trounsil
- 6:57used to stay periodically the inquest. We questioned her briefly in our office,
- 7:01Miss Strike, you say you can't remember any French trowns Will had while he
- 7:05stayed at your room in house? No, I can't. Besides, if
- 7:09I knew that man used dope, I never would have run him a room.
- 7:11How long did he rent from you, Miss Strike? About six months?
- 7:15I run respectable house. I don't mind if my people drink a little
- 7:17now and then, But those dope us there's no sir. Did you know
- 7:20anything about Toronsill, Miss Strike, where he spent his time? Where he
- 7:24had his meals? Yeah, don't serve it My place too much trouble.
- 7:27Most people eat at the Ace lunch room down corner where's that Misstrike? Grant
- 7:31and South Main, right down the corner. You think crowns Will might have
- 7:34spent some time there? You might have. I don't know, missus Strike.
- 7:38Did torowns Will ever mention anyone by the name of Patterson? No?
- 7:41Patterson? No, And you can't recall any friends he might have had.
- 7:45He had any friends and never said put in my house. It's all I
- 7:47know. All right, miss Strength, thank you. Here's a card,
- 7:50ma'am. If you come across any information about trouns that we'd appreciate it if
- 7:55you'd call us all right. Not all that's all man, thank you,
- 8:00bye go buye man big help. Yeah, not even a good identification withness.
- 8:09You got those listings we made on the Tucker Building. Yeah, yeah,
- 8:13let's see. You're here to see. Let me have it. Huh,
- 8:16Tucker Building, seventy three, one oh South Wiltshire. I wonder what
- 8:20Benny charlesl could have been doing out there. Shouldn't be too hard to check.
- 8:24It's a small building. Yeah, six listings for the whole place,
- 8:26A couple of lofts's real estate guy, dentist's architect, and a doctor.
- 8:31One dentist, one doctor could be a lead. Maybe pretty thin a minute,
- 8:37yes, yeah, bruh, come on here, Yeah what he got
- 8:43at letters? He's a sample and listen to this. Chief of Detectives head
- 8:48back Strand City, all Los Angeles, and in view of mounting wave of
- 8:52narcotic robberies, strongly recommend that your efforts to curb this lawlessness be redoubled.
- 8:58They all like that all of them they're mad. Can you blame them?
- 9:01Not a bit. We haven't got much to go on. Chief. The
- 9:03gang's pretty smart, all right, then let's be smarter. There's no law
- 9:07against it doing a best here, then make it better. I'm sick of
- 9:09that bunch, and I'm tired of these letters. And look at that record.
- 9:13In two months fifteen, drug store robbed eight medical offices to supply houses,
- 9:18two hospital pharmacies. Now tronics missing every time. Who's behind it?
- 9:22None of the old timers, We've checked them out, gone over every hype
- 9:26in mainliner we know of. All right, Then get on the transions,
- 9:28new faces. Climb on every one of them that shoots the stuff until you
- 9:31get to that gang and break it. If you need help, holler,
- 9:35but get to that gang and break it. Do you understand? Okay,
- 9:37scare, We'll try you dig up anything on that Trounsl case. Yet still
- 9:41checking out. One lady, what slip of paper we found in Trounsl's pocket
- 9:45ed, said Tucker, building on it. That's all, just gonna check
- 9:48it out when you called all right, hop on it fast. We got
- 9:50a lot of pressure on us. Keep in touch with the office. It
- 9:56was almost noon when Ben and I got out to the Tucker Building. It
- 10:00was a two story affair, comparatively small, very modern. We checked with
- 10:03the dentist in the building first, but he'd never heard of anyone with the
- 10:07name of Benny Traumsel. His records and appointment books proved it out. Well,
- 10:13that's one down, Jill. Yeah, let's try that doctor's office.
- 10:18Now, what's his name? Let me see? Uh? Oh Springer,
- 10:20doctor Fred Springer. He's on the second floor. Okay, there's a stairway
- 10:24down there. Come on, pretty close to lunch time, might not be
- 10:30in. Maybe somebody should read there. We haven't got much time to play
- 10:33with. Yeah. Chief Shore was up in there this morning. Here's the
- 10:37office, Fred Springer, MD. Good morning. I hope you don't we'd
- 10:46like to see doctor Springer. Please. Do you have an appointment? No,
- 10:50we don't. Well, the doctor's not in at present. Would you
- 10:52like to make an appointment for later in the day. No, man,
- 10:54we're a police officer, missus Sergeant Friday, I'm sergeant from MARYL. How
- 10:58do you do I'm a Miss Turner. I'm the doctor's nurse. Then you
- 11:01must take care of the appointment and record books for the doctor. Yes,
- 11:05I do. Well, maybe you can give us the information we're looking for,
- 11:07Miss Turner. Did the doctor ever have a patient for the name of
- 11:09Tronsil Benny Chronsilchronsall. No, I don't think so. Just a man check,
- 11:16thank you? No gee o U n s All is out the way
- 11:22spoke, Yes, ma'am. No, the name's not listed here. Let
- 11:28me check the account book. No, wait, it's funny. What's that,
- 11:37Miss Turner here in the back of the book and the doctor's handwriting.
- 11:41Look, Mchronsil the black parrot. Certainly funny. I can't remember seeing that
- 11:48notation before. It must be fairly recent, Miss Turner. What kind of
- 11:50a clientele would you say doctor Springer had? Oh, it's quite exclusive.
- 11:56Beverly Hills, bel Air. That's where most of the builds are. Mail.
- 11:58Can you seeing trounsle in the office here, Miss Turner? A small
- 12:01man, thin walk with a kind of a limp, not very well dressed.
- 12:05No, I don't think so. It doesn't sound like any of all
- 12:07patients. Would you show us the doctor's prescription list for the last two months,
- 12:11we'd like to check them. Well, I'm afraid I can't. Doctor
- 12:13Springer keeps him in the safe. He's the only one who has a combination.
- 12:18How long you been with doctor Springer? About ten months? Ever since
- 12:20he started his practice out here. Where was he before that? I don't
- 12:26understand all these questions. Is anything matter? Just a routine check, Miss
- 12:28Turner. When do you expect the doctor bank About four this afternoon. He's
- 12:33out making home calls. All right, here's our card. Would you ask
- 12:35him to call us as soon as he comes in. I'll do that,
- 12:37Thank you, Miss Turner, Bye, goodbye bye. Oh say miss Turner.
- 12:43The one more question? Yes, does doctor Springer have a patient but
- 12:46the name of Patterson? Oh? Yes, one of the doctor's first patients,
- 12:50John Patterson. He lives out on East Beverly Drive. When we left
- 12:56doctor Springer's office, we called R and I. There was no make on
- 13:00John Patterson. Ben and I drove over to see him, just on a
- 13:03hunch. It didn't pay off right then, but it showed a little promise.
- 13:07When the maid came to the door of the swank apartment, she told
- 13:09us Patterson was out for the day. We asked her about Patterson's occupation.
- 13:13She didn't know. We asked her about his friends, his business acquaintances.
- 13:18She could remember only two people visiting the apartment. One of them was doctor
- 13:22Springer, apparently a constant visitor, the other a tall, dark man who
- 13:26spoke bad English. We asked the maid how long she had worked for Patterson.
- 13:30She said ever since he moved to Los Angeles, about six months before
- 13:33a few things started to fall into place, but it was strictly a guestwork
- 13:37operation. Ben and I got in the car and headed for the south end
- 13:39of the city to check out some of the places Benny Charmsll was supposed to
- 13:43have frequented. We met a stone wall. From the Ace lunch Room near
- 13:46Benny's former rooming house to the Black Parrot. No one was willing to talk.
- 13:50Threats didn't work and needed the promises. Ben and I gave up for
- 13:54the moment and headed back to the office. A one call through al hamd
- 14:01but it's now close three. Seems like skid Row doesn't want any part of
- 14:05this one. Yeah, it was a bad feeling. Something's got him scared.
- 14:09Joe would like to know what it is or who it is. Yeah,
- 14:11like control one us Joe, get it? Wait, I got it.
- 14:16Eighty k to control one eighty K to control one, go ahead,
- 14:20eighty K fall station two five one three eighty K to control one. Roger
- 14:26km A three sixty seven. I won't know what that's all about. Now,
- 14:28let's find out. There's a drug store they ought to have a phone
- 14:31pull over, Hun, you got a nickel? Yeah? Oh yeah,
- 14:37yeah, thanks, I'll be back to night City Hall two five to one
- 15:03one. Thank you. Chief of Detective's Office, Hannah, this is Friday,
- 15:09Mike the chief there. Oh yeah, guess a minute, Bankstrand talking
- 15:16this Friday Ed. What do you got? You tied up? Nothing big?
- 15:18Then check in as soon as you can. Got something good? What
- 15:22you remember the stick up at Saint Agnes Hospital about a month ago? Pharmacy
- 15:26there, what about it? Two patrolmen picked up a user down their union
- 15:30station about an hour and a half ago. Yeah, guy was way back
- 15:33in his heels, had two files of morphine on him. Files had serial
- 15:35numbers. Good did they match out perfectly? Thanks? Ed, We'll be
- 15:39right in. When Ben and I got back to the office at three fifty
- 15:46two pm, we picked up chief ed Backstrand and went directly to the crime
- 15:50lab, where Lieutenant Lee Jones analyzed the contents of the two files taken from
- 15:52the suspect. Jones told us it was high grade morphine. We went back
- 15:58to the office and double checked this, sir. Numbers on the vials with
- 16:00the crime report on the Saint Agnes hospital robbery. They matched and there's a
- 16:04good break. These fials were in the loot when the gang knocked over the
- 16:07hospital twenty eight days ago. I stay in the trailer and we'll crack that
- 16:11gang wide open. This is the arrest report and the guy had yeah,
- 16:14picked him up in a bar off South Maine. Who is a guy trying
- 16:17you? Yeah? Here it is Man James Steiner, Phoenix, Arizona,
- 16:19aged thirty seven, transient laborer. Anybody talked this guy yet? Ed?
- 16:23Not yet? He shouldn't be too hot. You better get on it,
- 16:26right skip, Come on, Jill, check you later? Ed? What
- 16:30time you got Ben? M see? Uh twenty five past four? Phone
- 16:36call for you? Ben? Yeah? Who was your wife? Wants you
- 16:38to pick up some ash spring a bottle of nose drops for your kid on
- 16:41your way home. Oh yeah, almost forgot that the only call we had,
- 16:45Mike. That's right, thanks, Well you got that doctor Springer's number.
- 16:48Ben, Yeah, here. It is a quest few five five,
- 16:52two eight four, thanks nurse city. Call us round or didn't he?
- 17:00Yeah, doctor Springer's office. This is Sergeant Friday down at the police department.
- 17:11Doctor Springer there. Well, no, he isn't, sergeanty. He
- 17:14called in about twenty minutes ago, and I gave him your message. He
- 17:18said he'd call you. All right, Miss Turner. When he comes in,
- 17:19tell him to call us. I press on him. It's urgent.
- 17:22All right, sergeant, I'll do that. Goodbye, goodbye, no la.
- 17:26I don't know, just a hunch he maybe Duckings. Oh you call
- 17:30him that State Medical Board. Maybe they can check us out on doctor Springer.
- 17:37I put the call through to the State Medical Board and asked for a
- 17:40check on doctor Fred Springer. They said they'd call back within the hour.
- 17:44In the meantime, we had James Steiner brought to one of the interrogation rooms
- 17:48for questioning. It was all talk. It's like I threw him the sergeant
- 17:51when they booked me out. I don't know anything about this hospital job.
- 17:53Sit down, Steiner, Oh all right, how long you've been in the
- 17:57city, Steyner, la or the bottom month? I came from Phoenix looking
- 18:03for work. Thanks pretty slow in Phoenix. What'd you get the morphine?
- 18:07Huh? I said, where'd you get the morphine? The stuff? I
- 18:12bought it just for a pop, non, and I just play around with
- 18:15it, just for kicks. Whould you buy the vials from? Who?
- 18:21I don't know? Guy in a bar gave me a price? Which bar
- 18:23was? Then? Which bar? H black parrot. I'm not hooked.
- 18:29I just play around with it just for kicks. What did guy look like?
- 18:32Stanner? What did he look like? I don't know? Tall,
- 18:36I guess would you remember him if you saw him again? Remember? Sure,
- 18:41I talked to him a couple of nights at the bar. Was he
- 18:42on the stuff? Was he a hype hype? Yeah? Maybe, tall
- 18:48fellow? Dark you shooting the staff? Shooting the stuff? No? No,
- 18:53I'm no mainliner. I never took in the veins of my life.
- 18:56I told you I'd do it just for kicks, just a no. Man,
- 19:00take off your shirt. Let's see your arms. Huh my arms?
- 19:03Come on, take it off? Who are you kidding? Standing? Your
- 19:08arm looks like a pincushion. I told you, just once in a while,
- 19:11just for the kicks. I'm not hooked on it. I found two
- 19:15files of stolen morphino and you, Stanner, you can go two ways,
- 19:19hard or easy. Hard or easy. I told you I ain't done nothing.
- 19:23I bought this stuff. I use a cap or a binder once in
- 19:26a while for kicks, but I'm not hooked. I bought the stuff.
- 19:30I tell you. Who was he? Staner? Who's older to you?
- 19:33Who? I told you? I met him in a bar? The black
- 19:36parrot? Who was he? Who's tall? Dark? He gave me good
- 19:41price? Come on, let's have it. Steaner his name? I feeling
- 19:45sick? You got something for me? Him sick? All right? Mike,
- 19:51Yeah, Joe, get some milk, a couple of quartz right away.
- 19:55Okay, you ready to tell us? Stanner? Who was he?
- 20:00I'm sick, sick. We're getting some milk for you. Now, come
- 20:04on, you better talk Max. That's all we said. Name was Max,
- 20:10and gave me a good prize on it. I'll only take a pop
- 20:12now and then, just for kicks. You think you could point him out
- 20:15for us? Yeah? Yeah, maybe I'm sick sick our college from Hello,
- 20:26this is doctor Springer calling. You wanted to talk to me? Yes,
- 20:30we did, doctor, and we've got a few questions we'd like to
- 20:33ask you. Oh, hold on just a minute, William, doctor Springer.
- 20:36Joe, all right, tell him we got to see him tonight.
- 20:37We'll call him back later, Doc Springer. Yes, sorry, doctor,
- 20:41we'll have to see you later on tonight. If you beat home. Well,
- 20:45I have an appointment this evening. Would you mind telling me what this
- 20:48is all about? Sure, Doctor's boy? A man named Benny Trompson.
- 20:52Oh, I see, And if you don't mind, we'd like to check
- 20:56over your prescription. That's will you? Yes, I'll cancel my appointment.
- 21:02You can contact me here at home fifteen thirty eight South Road. I'll be
- 21:07here all night. All right, doctor, thank you, we'll see you
- 21:11later then, yes, goodbye, goodbye. What do you say? All
- 21:15right? Yeah, it's all right. I'll buy that. How an't you
- 21:18yours now? Joe, doctor Springer. He knows who killed Benny tronsl I
- 21:22bet he knows why. When Mike Cannon came back with a milk we fed
- 21:29at the Steiner and then we put him back in his cell. We put
- 21:30in another call that John Patterson not on East Beverly Drive, but there was
- 21:33no answer. We left word with Hannon where we were going, and Ben
- 21:37and I headed out for doctor Springer's home. It was seven point thirty five
- 21:41when we pulled up into the driveway at fifteen thirty eight South Road, a
- 21:45low rambling ranch type home. We got out of the car and made our
- 21:52way down the path to the front door. A gray Persian cat followed us.
- 22:00The door was half open. We knocked, but there was no answer.
- 22:03Through the window, we could see the living room was dimly lighted.
- 22:06We went in. We found doctor Springer sitting in a large carved mahogany chair
- 22:11in the dining room. The room was hung with draperies. He was slumped
- 22:15forward, face down on the dining table. There was a bullet hole in
- 22:18his right temple. On the floor. Near his right hand was a thirty
- 22:22two automatic pistol. In the center of the dining table, it was a
- 22:26piece of white paper. Looks like he beat us. Yeah, any names
- 22:33on that confession. One says he killed Trouns. Oh wait a minute,
- 22:41it says John Patterson. He forced me to this. What I don't know.
- 22:45It looked like to you. Here's another one, nor Burgh. That's
- 22:49all it says. Then he signed his name doctor Fred Spryer. Ben,
- 22:56come over here, look at these m I happened to him. Works this
- 23:02morphine, white powder could be and he was honored himself. Looks like him.
- 23:07We'll find out when they post him. I'll get it. Yeah,
- 23:12Sergeant Friday there, please this Joe, Mike, what do you got and
- 23:15you talk? All right? There? Yeah? Go ahead? Has got
- 23:18a kickback on your call on the state medical board on this doctor Fred Springer.
- 23:22He's got a registered physician in the state of California. Besides that,
- 23:25his license was revoked in Pennsylvania two years ago. Illegal operations. Matt explains
- 23:29it. Notify homicide, get the crime lab in the corner out here with
- 23:32you. Looks like Springer shot himself. Okay, Joe, we'll wait for
- 23:33him, but hurry him up, Mike. We got a couple more places
- 23:36to check out tonight. Okay, Joe's healer, right, what's the next
- 23:40Matterson Blaze? I don't know. Maybe we ought to try Steiner first.
- 23:41Sounds good to me. Heels like we're getting clue. Yeah, man,
- 23:45real close. Twelve minutes later, homicide in the crime Labman checked in at
- 23:53the Springer house and Ben and I checked out. We went back to the
- 23:56office and found it Backstrand waiting for us. We told him our story and
- 24:00he sent two men out to keep an eye on the Patterson place. Two
- 24:03other men went to work to try and track down the other name in Springer's
- 24:04confession note Norberg. Ben and I went up to the county jail and picked
- 24:10up Steiner. The three of us started out to look for the man who
- 24:11sold Steiner the two vials of morphine stolen from a hospital pharmacy a month before.
- 24:15The man's name was Max, who was tall and dark. That was
- 24:19all we knew. The rest of it was up to Steiner. Two other
- 24:22men from the detail, Davis and Emerson, came along with us to take
- 24:26care of Steiner if anything went wrong. Our first stop was the black pair
- 24:30of tavern. Davis parked the car and an alley down the street. Steiner,
- 24:33Ben and I got out and walked the rest of the way. You
- 24:37understand what you're supposed to do? Steiner me. Yeah, I go in
- 24:41first set at the bar, You too will follow me, I said.
- 24:45At the bar and I see Max, I give you the sign that's okay,
- 24:48huh, that's right, and you don't try to break for it.
- 24:51Break forth me and I told you I'm squaring with you guys. All right,
- 24:56Steiner go ahead. Let's hope it works. Jill. Yeah, there
- 25:02he goes inside. Come on, I'll look. Try to grab one of
- 25:07the boots along the wall if he can. Huh. Right here we are
- 25:15the first booth. Ben, it's empty. Yeah, I was left to
- 25:21order at the flower waitress. Got a night out? Make it a couple
- 25:25of beers? Were you a couple of bears? Okay, Joe, So
- 25:29look at Steiner. Yeah, he's signaling. Must mean the guy putting on
- 25:32his coat over there. No, no, hold, it been really gets
- 25:33past us. I'd get Steiner back to the car. I'll tell the guy
- 25:42you come after me. I didn't know how right Steiner was or how much
- 25:51we could trust him. All I knew was that the man I was following
- 25:53was tall, and he was in a hurry. I followed him three quarters
- 25:56of a block before he turned in at a motel. He went to a
- 25:59cottage to the rear of the lot, let himself in and close the door
- 26:02quickly behind him. A minute later, Ben and the others pulled up in
- 26:04the car. Got a mistakes, can't joker says, that was Max.
- 26:11Let's make sure come on this one. I'm saying the one down at the
- 26:14end here. I'll be careful you too. All right, here we are.
- 26:18Wait a minute, right there. Look there's no rear door. He's
- 26:26got to come out the front. Keep the door clear. You're ready,
- 26:29hose cover me open up in there, police officers, open up. Good
- 26:41for a minute, all right, Ben, give it back to him.
- 26:48Come on, all right, throw your guns out first, then come out
- 26:51with your hands behind your head and make it fast. Watch it, Benn.
- 26:56He's making a break, all right, mister Hornus. Get out of
- 26:59my way and get out. You get him, Ben, that's good,
- 27:04Ben, You all right. He didn't mean it, Cover, he didn't
- 27:07mean it. He didn't know what he was doing. That must be a
- 27:11good excuse, lady. A lot of people use it. Come on,
- 27:14Ben, let's take him in. It was ten minutes past midnight when we
- 27:21got back to headquarters. Both the man and the woman were booked for violation
- 27:23of the State and Narcotics Act, a felony. He gave his name as
- 27:26Max Jansen, and his luggage we found thirteen vals of morphine, large quantities
- 27:32of heroin, and a small amount of Panapin. He gave us the names
- 27:34and the dresses of sex active members of the narcotics gang. He identified doctor
- 27:37Springer as second in command. Just a few more questions, Jansen, All
- 27:41right, why did Springer kill Tronson? He had it coming. Trounce knew
- 27:47the scoring. He was blackmailing him, bleeding them white. Why didn't the
- 27:48gang take care of him? Boss said, no, rough stuff. Things
- 27:52were going too good, he warned Springer, but he wouldn't listen. Ah,
- 27:56Jensen, Just one more question. Who's the boss? Get off flight,
- 28:00State's witness. It might help. We can't promise you anything. Who's
- 28:03the boss? Patterson? Yeah, one thirty eight East Beverley Drive. That's
- 28:07right. What about Norburg? How does he figure the same guy? Patterson?
- 28:11Norburg? Both the same? And what's his real name? Norberg?
- 28:15Tony Norburg? What's his front? He's legit? Or he used to be
- 28:19importing business? Where here? Got an office downtown? Do I get protection?
- 28:25Where's Noburg? Now home? Laurel Canyon? I get protection? I
- 28:30thought you said he lived out in East Beverley his apartment? His home's out
- 28:33in the canyon. Where what's your dress? Do I get protection? You'll
- 28:37get protection. Winding way eight sixty winding way. All right, Friday,
- 28:42Romero, take some in with you, all right, Davis, cover the
- 28:56back of the house. Lavine, you cover the front. Come on,
- 28:59Ben, yes, mister again, who's calling police officers? Come in?
- 29:11Monte thank you now, got your hands up, face the walls. You'll
- 29:17never make it, lady. The house is around. Tony, get the
- 29:19stuff. It's our only chance. They'll cut you down. Norburg all right,
- 29:22Genie, give me the gun. Don't be a fool. They're gonna
- 29:26march out the door in front of us, right to the car. Not
- 29:27going, Genie, all right if you want, I'm not going. All
- 29:32right, Tony stay, come on, covers. You never make it,
- 29:36lady, I said, move fast, all right. Ben, hit the
- 29:38dark. She's going for the car so you can get those tires. Come
- 29:52on, Dan, yeah. Rburg was smart. Must be the girlfriend.
- 30:07Yes, So I wonder why this started? Hm? Why did they get
- 30:12on the stuff? Jill for kicks? Ben? None of them ever get
- 30:17hooked, just for kicks. The story you have just heard is true,
- 30:30only the names were changed to protect the innocent. Tony Norburg alias John Patterson
- 30:37was tried and convicted for possession of narcotics, robbery, and conspiracy, and
- 30:41was sentenced to the maximum term prescribed by law each count to run consecutively.
- 30:47He died three years and eleven days after his arrival at the state penitentiary.
- 30:56You have just heard the ninth in a new series of Authentic Care transcribed from
- 31:00official files. Technical advice for Dragnet is furnished by the Los Angeles Police Department.
- 31:07Tonight's program is dedicated to Cheeperskin Eartfish of the North Sacramento Police Department,
- 31:14who, on the night of August eleventh, nineteen thirty five, gave his
- 31:17life so that yours might be more secure. Dragnet came to you from Los
- 31:27Angeles. This is NBC, the National Broadcasting Company. Welcome Mac Well.
- 31:41This is noteworthy just for being the first time that Dragging that dealt with narcotics,
- 31:48and you'll tell a lot about it. They really go into a sort
- 31:52of realism of the world, using a lot of typical drug prices that you
- 31:59wouldn't have heard in previous programs. It's certainly a different approach to drugs and
- 32:06dragon that would take in the nineteen sixties, though the sixties percented some additional
- 32:10challenges, there's still a Sergeant Friday delivering a sardonic closing work, which is
- 32:17actually quite app It's worth noting how hard it was to talk against drugs in
- 32:24any medium, very specifically, I think due to portrayals during the pre code
- 32:37area. There were very strict rules in Hollywood. This ended up extending to
- 32:42other medias and it made it hard to even warn against drugs. Vick Powell's
- 32:47fantastic film To the Ends of the Earth, which was our five hundredth episode
- 32:53special, was years getting made, even as it afformed viewers and later listeners
- 33:01of the risk of the illegal drug trade, and even as late as the
- 33:06early nineteen seventies, the Comics Code Authority refused to approve an issue of The
- 33:12Amazing Spider Man dealing with the dangers of illegal drug use. That was certainly
- 33:17something that made these early Dragnet narcotics episodes such landmarks. There was a problem
- 33:27in America that was growing, a drug problem, and it wasn't going to
- 33:30go away by not talking about it. Dragnet was a series that often shine
- 33:36the light on some things that were uncomfortable to deal with but necessary, and
- 33:40certainly drugs were near the top of the list, and this episode, released
- 33:45in nineteen forty nine, was far more realistic and cutting edge than most stories
- 33:52that would be viewed for a decade or more. Now to listener comments and
- 33:55feedback, and we have some praise for episode thirteen four. Patrick right,
- 34:04so love that episode, and Ashley says me too, it was great and
- 34:13indeed I think the city Hall bombing is one of the finest Dragnet episodes made
- 34:17for radio or for television. We'll get to see the visual part eventually,
- 34:23and then we have a comment review on iTunes for Michael, who said I
- 34:29would first of all thank Adam Graham first podcast of Old Time Radio. Most
- 34:34of all, I'd like to thank him for running Dragnet again. As a
- 34:36longtime listener, know I've missed some of the early podcasts, so I'm very
- 34:40pleased that they are being run again. Adam is a great host. I
- 34:44enjoy every Saturday evening when I can listen to the Old Time Radio after a
- 34:47long day of college football. Well, thanks so much, Michael. I
- 34:52appreciate and I appreciate your long time listening to and support of the program.
- 34:58Michael is certainly one of the longest time friends and supporters of the program,
- 35:04going way back several years back to when he had a city that he was
- 35:08from that I had to have a pronunciation guide on. And finally a comment
- 35:15from Facebook, Dave says, my iPod has more hours of Dragnet. Philip
- 35:21Marlow Box thirteen in rogues, galleries and music. Love what you do,
- 35:24Adam, Well, thanks so much, Dave, appreciate you listening and that
- 35:30will do it for today. Join us back here on Monday for the Saint
- 35:35and next Saturday it'll be another episode of Dragnet. In the meantime, sendra
- 35:39comments to Box thirteen at Great Detectors dot net, follow us on Twitter,
- 35:44Radio Detactors, and become one of our friends on Facebook, Facebook dot com.
- 35:49Slash Radio Attactives from Boise, Idaho. This is your host, Adam
- 35:52Grahamson and AF